BACKGROUND Despite high levels of psychosocial risks, black women of Caribbean origin rarely consult health professionals regarding symptoms of perinatal depression. Reasons for this are unclear as there has been little perinatal mental health research among this ethnic group. AIM To examine stakeholder perspectives on what might account for low levels of consultation for perinatal depression...

BACKGROUND The stroke awareness raising campaign 'Act FAST' (Face, Arms, Speech: Time to call Emergency Medical Services) has been rolled out in multiple waves in England, but impact on stroke recognition and response remains unclear. PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to test whether providing knowledge of the FAST acronym through a standard Act FAST campaign leaflet increases accurate re...

To determine the echocardiographic and Doppler characteristics of mitral regurgitation associated with a flail mitral valve, precordial and transesophageal echocardiography with pulsed wave and Doppler color flow mapping was performed in 17 patients with a flail mitral valve leaflet due to ruptured chordae tendineae (Group I) and 22 patients with moderate or severe mitral regurgitation due to o...

Echocardiographic observations of leaflet motion have taught us volumes about the mechanism of valvular heart disease. Identifying excessive versus restricted mitral leaflet motion, as in Carpentier’s classification, has become the foundation of repair techniques tailored to the individual patient. Ischemic mitral regurgitation (MR) has nevertheless remained a therapeutic challenge, with import...

Gram-negative bacteria can survive in harsh environments in part because the asymmetric outer membrane (OM) hinders the entry of toxic compounds. Lipid asymmetry is established by having phospholipids (PLs) confined to the inner leaflet of the membrane and lipopolysaccharides (LPS) to the outer leaflet. Perturbation of OM lipid asymmetry, characterized by PL accumulation in the outer leaflet, d...

This report describes a technique for anterior leaflet extension using an autologous pericardial patch in patients suffering from rheumatic mitral regurgitation. The technique has recently evolved and now enables us to correct both vertical and transversal fibrotic leaflet retraction.

The mitral valve is a complex structure composed of the leaflets, annulus, chordae tendineae, and papillary muscles. Competency of the mitral valve is dependent on the proper function of each of these component structures. The pathophysiological triad of mitral regurgitation (MR) was originally described by Carpentier in 1983.1 It included the etiology of the valve lesion, the valve lesion itse...